Product Description

'Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side, where my friends and I live and go to school and play and sleep - sometimes with each other. We're smart, we've inherited classic good looks, and we know how to party. It's a luxe life, but someone's got to live it.' "The Gossip Girl" series is the ultimate in glamour and cool - set in New York's glamorous Upper East Side, the narrative follows the thrills and spills (with Jimmy Choo shoes and shopping at Barneys mixed in along the way) of its richest and most beautiful teenage residents.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #22040 in Books
• Published on: 2003-03-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

Review
'Gossip Girl has the effect of gossip itself - once you enter it's hard to extract yourself; teens will devour this whole.' Publisher's Weekly

Following the runaway success of Harry Potter, Bloomsbury is now branching out into the teen market, with what is sure to be a controversial series of short novels about the activities of a gang of hip, young New Yorkers. This first story follows the trials and tribulations of a group of rich high-school friends from the Upper East Side, who regularly get drunk or stoned, indulge in experimental sex and wouldn't be seen dead in non-designer gear, all under the indulgent eyes of their parents. This is Sweet Valley High with more than a hint of acid - the characters in Cecily von Ziegesar's deliciously bitchy novel are catty, malicious, treacherous and utterly riveting. Blair and Nate have been going steady for a while, and Blair is gearing herself up to let him go all the way. But the unexpected return of her old schoolfriend Serena puts paid to all Blair's thoughts of losing her virginity. Serena has been kicked out of her boarding school, and will be rejoining her former classmates at the Constance Billard School for Girls. Serena is drop-dead gorgeous and during her absence in Europe, Blair has enjoyed being the centre of attention. That's all set to change now Serena is back on the scene, and what's more, there's definitely something going on between her and Nate. And why did she come back? Are all those rumours about STDs, abortions and strange rituals with chickens really true? It takes no time for the gossip machine to get going, and Serena finds herself increasingly isolated by her former friends. The main story is interspersed with salacious emails from the mysterious Gossip Girl who spreads rumours about the goings on of the NYC crowd with abandon, and makes only a cursory attempt at anonymity by using her victims' initials. Fast-paced, outrageous and extremely provocative, this will go down a storm with teenagers - whether their parents will be quite so thrilled at this uninhibited account of teenage antics remains to be seen. Ages 14+ (Kirkus UK)

Synopsis
'Welcome to New York City's Upper East Side, where my friends and I live and go to school and play and sleep - sometimes with each other. We're smart, we've inherited classic good looks, and we know how to party. It's a luxe life, but someone's got to live it.' "The Gossip Girl" series is the ultimate in glamour and cool - set in New York's glamorous Upper East Side, the narrative follows the thrills and spills (with Jimmy Choo shoes and shopping at Barneys mixed in along the way) of its richest and most beautiful teenage residents.

About the Author
Cecily von Zeigesar attended herself one of the smart private schools in Manhatten, New York, and much of the tales told in 'Gossip Girl' as a result ring with great authenticity. She is currently writing further titles in the Gossip Girl series. Bloomsbury will be publishing the series at regular intervals throughout 2003 with a high profile, energetic and suitably cutting-edge marketing campaign. This deliciously catty and engrossing series will be the spicy vanguard for Bloomsbury pushing the boundaries into young adult fiction.

Customer Reviews

classic novel
this is one of the best books ive read in a long time. unfortunatly i read the carlyles befor this one. but the same thing.

A great read
I received the book as a present for my birthday, and originally didn't really think I'd enjoy it as it's not my sort of book genre. But as soon as I started reading the first chapter I've been hooked on the series ever since, and have read each book in the series in turn, and also now the prequel. A fantastic read if you just want something that you can just purely enjoy, without it being hard going.

Makes a great fire!
This book is nothing but a mess. I was sitting at the fire reading, at page 20 i had had enough, was bored out of my brain listening to some girl rave on about what clearly was herself, and threw the damn thing on the fire.

I only bought this because it was on a sale on amazon for £1